Organizations are working relentlessly to reopen socially-distant offices, implement voice tech to ensure employee safety
As organizations are opening their workplaces during the COVID-19 pandemic, contactless interfaces and voice tech will help re-establishing secure working environments for employees.
Countries across the world are still enforcing social-distancing norms. It is expected that these measures will be implemented until the end of 2020 to prevent fresh cases. Gartner’s Senior Analyst Anthony Mullen stated that organizations are planning to implement newer technologies to facilitate return-to-office for employees.
CIOs state that voice assistants like Microsoft’s Cortana, Google Home, Alexa for Business, chatbots, biometrics will play a significant role in the businesses to help workers maintain a safe distance. At the start of the pandemic, organizations were unprepared to provide the required tools to work productively.
Voice-based AI Assistant – Certainly the Future of Workplace
Contactless interfaces like voice technologies will be the top investment choices for CIOs and organizations, as they are planning to use biometric authentication, intelligent assistants, and voice user interfaces.
Leaders are working to prepare their organizations for the “rebound period” by using technologies to support business continuity and elasticity. Users should be able to adjust with partial returns to work and possible lockdowns due to the emergence of fresh cases. Organizations are also taking steps to invest in the technology required for workplace safety in the post-pandemic environment.
Call centers were faced with sudden challenges when they had to service the customers with only two-third of their employees available, or with employees’ non-productive remote working environments.
Few business organizations have already started using voice assistants in the contact center services. CIOs state that while employees were already familiar with tools like Webex, Zoom, Slack, and Microsoft Teams before the pandemic. Employees can use simple speech-based software and chatbots like voice-to-text transcription.
Businesses have started planning the shift towards cloud-based operations and slow uptake of AI-based voice tech is on cards as well. CIOs have stated that while enterprises like ERP bot, business analytics bot, and HR bot were rolled out a couple of years ago. The technology was not so well received earlier, as it was considered to be high-risk.
How Bots Are Altering the Future of Enterprise
Alexa for Business has been used to integrate voice commands for tasks like controlling conference rooms, devices, room temperature settings, and manage meetings. The remote work environment has resulted in increased adoption of mobile technology, allowing hackers to gain access to sensitive data to unprotected logins.
CIOs have to ensure that password etiquette is followed by the employees. Multi-factor
authentication is another effective way to avoid malware attacks. IT leaders are also using
biometrics as a method to control access to sensitive data.
Megana Natarajan is a Global News Correspondent with OnDOt Media. She has experience in content creation and has previously created content for agriculture, travel, fashion, energy and markets. She has 3.9 years’ experience as a SAP consultant and is an Engineering graduate.
